In Trump we must trust

On Friday, Jan. 20, at noon, Donald J. Trump officially became the 45th president of the United States of America, bringing to an official close the contentious campaign season that marked this election.

Trump is our president and going forward, he will — and must — shift into governing mode.

It has been an emotional, trying time for many Americans. For those who are not yet at ease with this new brand of presidential administration, it's an uncomfortable time. And for Trump's supporters, the excitement of victory is settling into a smoother gear.

It is also a historic moment, in more ways than one.

From the beginning, Trump promised to be a broker of change. In every appearance, he made it clear that he was not the status quo, that he would do things differently.

He is bold, brash, confident in demeanor, seen by some as an opportunity to create real change in our federal government.

He is, at age 71, the oldest man in history to take the oath of office for a first term as president of the United States. Ronald Reagan was 69 the first time he was sworn into office.

And yet, Trump is full of energy. He campaigned relentlessly. He makes use of Twitter as no American politician probably ever has before, bypassing the mainstream media at will and broadcasting his thoughts — unfiltered. Twitter has become his megaphone as the news media pick up his tweets and dissect them on-air.

President Trump is a "what-you-see-is-what-you-get" kind of leader. He is the man of the hour, a businessman rather than a politician who promised not to play by Washington's established rules.

He stoked the fire of hope in American voters, many of whom have felt disenfranchised, overlooked and misunderstood by the Washington establishment.

Now Trump is that Washington establishment, sitting in the Oval Office. If the hopes of his supporters are fulfilled, he will elevate the American worker, work his magic and bring good-paying jobs back to our country, boost the economy, give us a better health care policy, a better immigration policy and, as he likes to say (he even trademarked the phrase early in his campaign), he will "Make America Great Again!"

In these and similar efforts, we should all hope he succeeds in his efforts to improve our economy, our job market, our health care delivery system.

To help him, he has — at least for the next two years — a Congress and Senate dominated by his own party, the Republicans. He could soon have a Supreme Court with a politically conservative majority.

We will find out in the weeks and months to come how this will begin to unfold, how his distinctly nontraditional style of governing will play out, how foreign governments will respond to his unusual ways of getting things done.

President Trump does not make idle promises, and we should not underestimate him. After he won the Republican primary election, he declared that he was in the race to win. He did, against all odds and predictions. Now it's time for him to deliver on those promises.

Most Americans will not agree with the new president on every issue, every policy, every promise he fulfills. But some Americans will rejoice at each promise fulfilled. It may not be the same people rejoicing at every fulfillment, but some will rejoice each time a campaign promise is brought to fruition. While many voters were willing to overlook some of Trump's words, actions or personality traits, many others chose to support him because of those very things.

No one can deny that it was a long, difficult and divisive 18 months.

One promise we hope Trump delivers on quickly: He has promised to bring Americans together, to unite us as a nation. If he succeeds in that effort, it will be much easier for him to achieve the remainder of his goals.